A melt in the mouth soft and spongy cheese balls in light and sweet mild cardamom flavored sugary syrup. Its a traditional and easy to make Bengali sweet that you can’t go wrong with.
Rasgulla or popularly known as Rosogolla in local dialect, actually originated from Orissa and as with many other Indian sweet and dessert recipes, requires only three basic ingredients (milk, sugar and lemon juice) which are easily available in any kitchen all the time. In this step by step photo recipe of Rasgulla first chhena (aka paneer or Indian cottage cheese) is prepared from milk using lemon juice and then small balls prepared from it are cooked in sugar syrup to give it a sweet character.

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Preparation Time: 20 minutes

Cooking Time: 30 minutes

Serves: 6 servings (13 rasgullas)

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Cooking Measurements

Rasgulla Recipe In Hindi (हिन्दी में पढ़े)

Rasgulla Recipe In Gujarati (ગુજરાતી માં વાંચો)

Ingredients:

1 liter Full Cream Milk (cow milk is preferable)

2 tablespoons Lemon Juice

1½ cups Sugar (little less or more, as per your taste)

4 cups Water

2-3 Green Cardamom Pods, optional

Note:

In this recipe, we have used Kirkland signature brand whole milk available in Costco to make Rasgulla. However, you can use any brand of whole milk. Use cow’s milk for better results.
Read/follow recipe of fresh paneer (chhena) (follow steps 1 to 5) to prepare fresh paneer (chhena) at home. If you are following the given link to prepare chhena then skip step-1 and step-2 given below.

Directions:

Bring the milk to boil over medium flame. Mix lemon juice with 2 tablespoons water.
When milk comes to rolling boil, add water-lemon juice mixture gradually and stir continuously using spatula. Solid milk portion and liquid whey portion will start to separate within minute or two. When it separates completely, turn off the flame. Spread a cheese-cloth (plain muslin cloth) over large strainer or colander and transfer over it and drain the whey. Rinse it in running water or pour 2-3 glasses of plain water over it to remove sourness (lemony taste).
Drain water and tie chhena in a muslin cloth. Squeeze it gently to drain the excess water and hang it for 30 minutes to get the right amount of moisture. Do not hang it for more than 30 to 45 minutes.
Untie the muslin cloth and transfer chhena to a plate.

Crumble it with hand. It should be crumbly and little moist. If it is too dry, rasgulla will turn hard and if it is too soft, they will break while cooking and will not retain their shape after cooking.
Knead it using hand until it all comes together like dough and it starts to release some fat. Your palm will turn little greasy; it’s an indication that it has started to release fat. Stop kneading after that.
Make 13-15 small balls from kneaded paneer dough. The size of balls will increase to almost double after boiling in sugar syrup in next step so do not make very large balls.
Heat 1½ cups sugar with 4-cups water and cardamom pods in a large broad vessel (having lid) like pressure cooker or saucepan over medium flame and make sugar syrup.
When it comes to rolling boil, gently drop prepared balls in it.
Cover it with a lid and let it cook over medium flame. If you are using pressure cooker, just put the lid over cooker, do not use whistle.
After about 5-minutes, remove the lid and stir it gently with a spatula. Again, cover it with a lid and let it boil over medium flame for 7-8 minutes, stir it gently once in between. Remove lid and turn off the flame. You will notice that size of balls has increased to almost double.
They will shrink a little after turning off the flame but it is normal. (If it shrinks too much then its an indication that something has gone wrong.) Transfer them to a large bowl and let them cool for 5-6 hours. Rasgulla are now ready for serving.

Tips and Variations:

Use full fat cow’s milk for best results. However, if it is not available, you can use regular milk.
Do not use store bought paneer to make this sweet.
Use deep and wide mouthed vessel for perfect cooking.
If prepared chhena is too dry (in step-4), rasgulla will turn hard and if it is too soft, they will break while cooking and not retain their shape after cooking.
Do not knead chhena after it starts to release the fat in step-5.
It is necessary to keep the syrup boiling all the time while cooking the rasgulla in it. Do not cook it over low flame. If required, increase the flame to high to keep the syrup boiling.
Do not change the quantity of water and do not reduce the quantity of sugar (you can add more sugar) as they are required to cook them perfectly.
If you want to double the recipe, cook them in batches (from step-8 to step-10). You can use the same sugar syrup for the second batch. If syrup is not enough, add water and sugar in same ratio as given in ingredients table above for cooking the second batch.

Taste: Soft, spongy and juicy with mild cardamon flavor.

Serving Ideas: Serve it as a dessert after dinner or as a sweet with meal in lunch. It can be enjoyed at any time with any savory snack.

Author: Foram

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55 Comments

May 30, 2021 by Atul

I tried it but I failed. Rasgulla was soft but too much, not spongy taste like raw paneer.

Response: Hello Atul, the main reasons behind the not spongy rasgullas are -1. Excess moisture in chenna, 2. They will taste like raw paneer when they are not cooked enough.

Sep 18, 2020 by Renu

My chhena was in excess. So I kept it in fridge and made rasgulla the next day. When I put the balls in chashni, they started breaking. Can we not make rasgulla of one day old chhena? Pls reply. And one more thing, I put very little sugar in chashni at the time of boiling. So can we boil rasgulla in syrup which has little sugar,is it ok? Plz tell me what went wrong with my rasgulla?

Response: Hello Renu, the main reason behind breaking rasgullas is the excess moisture in chenna. Make sure that chenna has not too much moisture.
If possible, try to use fresh chenna for the perfect rasgulla.
You can make syrup with less sugar for cooking the rasgullas.

Jul 28, 2020 by Shweta Bansal

I made these, they turned out to be good but had slight chewiness to them. Where did I miss because I followed the recipe exactly the way you mentioned? Please advise.

Response: Thank you Shweta for trying the recipe. Sometimes, rasgullas turn chewy when they are over cooked or when chenna has less moisture.

Jun 16, 2020 by Neha Kapoor

There was little after taste of paneer left in rasgulla. Should I boil in for another 3-4 min in the syrup.

May 05, 2020 by Ritesh

Hi, I'm on my 4th attempt. I've tried with mother dairy cow milk and toned milk. Today with Amul pasteurized toned milk. I've tried with adding cornflour and without as well. Everything goes well till about 15-20 mins. They never break swell up wonderfully. When I check to see if the rasgullas are cooked after 10-12 mins by putting them in a bowl of water. They float. After 15 mins they float. Its only near the 20 min mark that they start to sink. But then suddenly they shrink all of a sudden while boiling away merrily. So I get scared and put them in bowl of iced water and upon cooling add sugar syrup. They are palatable but not the real deal. They remain mostly round.
In today's attempt everything looked good for about 13 mins and then suddenly near the 15 mins mark they shrank although they were still floating upon putting in water a min before.
Do you think I'm overcooking them or somethings else the matter
Should I just switch off the gas after 12 mins.

Response: Hello Ritesh, rasgullas shrinks a little bit (not much) after cooking and transferring. So it's natural.

Apr 13, 2020 by Alka Poddar

Please email me veg recipes both indian and continental with chutneys as tips if any. I use a lot of your recipes when overseas Thanks

Jan 04, 2019 by Nancy

I have a question. I'm planning on making this for friends. My problem is one is allergic to sugar. Could I substitute xylitol for the sugar? Thank you.

Response: Hello Nancy, I am not able to give the answer as I have never tried it with xylitol.

Apr 03, 2018 by Deepali

Rasgulla became double while cooking..but after switching off the flame, they turn flat.

Response: Hello Deepali, it happens when there is excess moisture in chhena. When you try this next time, make sure that chenna has not excess moisture. To remove the excess moisture in chenna, hang the paneer/chenna a little bit longer or press it between paper napkins.

Feb 06, 2018 by Nidhi

I like yr recipe of Rasgulla, can I use the same syrup in making Rasgulla again.since every time it always remain ...Ps advice me

Response: Yes, you can use left over syrup to make another batch of Rasgulla.

Feb 01, 2018 by Sk

Hi, i tried to make chhenna with fresh milk (2litre bottle of cows milk kept in fridge) but when I knead my chhenna (after its been hanging for abt 30mmins) its always sticky never forms into a dough no matter how much i knead it. Please help me, what should I do so I can make the dough to make rasgulla balls). Thank you.

Response: You need to squeeze out the water from chenna after hanging it for 30 minutes by pressing the chenna. Untie the cloth only after you have fully squeezed out the water and knead the dough.

Sep 20, 2017 by Parveen

Hi.. Can I use fresh cream instead of milk..

Response: No, you can't use fresh cream instead of milk.

Sep 03, 2017 by Syed Naumaan

Very very best rasgulla.

Aug 26, 2017 by Sony

Came out really well. Some of them broke while boiling in the syrup, Any ideas why?

Response: It happens if the chenna has excess moisture or not kneaded well.

Jul 18, 2017 by Mastani

Hi, I like your recipe. Clear and in detail. I have been making rasgullas for some time but they turn yellowish. They are not white like store bought. Any tips for that ?
Thanks

Response: The colour of the rasgulla depends on the colour of the prepared chenna from the milk. If you use cow's milk, rasgullas turn little yellowish. Try to make rasgullas with other type/brand milk to make them white.

Jul 06, 2017 by sarita

It is good but I want to make rasgulla white in colour, actually it made slightly yellow.

Response: Color of rasgulla depends on the color of milk. Try using different brand milk to make them white.

Jun 24, 2017 by Malik

Hello.
Is the recipe same for rasgulla with milk? I have seen rasmalai recipe, but I had bought rasgulla in milk from a shop. The milk was very light. Is there also a recipe for that on your website?

Response: Hello Malik, use the same rasmalai recipe for milk to serve with store bought rasgulla.

May 28, 2017 by Poonam

s there any alternative of lemon to curdle the milk reason lemons scent remains but when we buy from shop there is no lemon smell.

Response: Hello Poonam, you can use the white vinegar instead of lemon to curdle the milk. If you are using the lemon for curdling the milk, don't forget to wash the chhena/paneer to remove the lemon flavor.

May 24, 2017 by Smita

Thanks for ur recipe . It was very helpful to me.

Apr 12, 2017 by Manisha

Rasgulla accha bana lekin paneer ka taste atta hai. Shop jaisa jalil nahi huan. Please help.

Response: Hello Manisha, it happens when the rasgullas are not cooked enough.

Mar 14, 2017 by Sahanaz khatun

Mei aj rasgulla banaya. Uska test bohat achha tha. But aj me cook kar rahethi to pehle bohat achha hi Rahithi. Bt kuch time bad rasgulla dhire dhire thora tutne laga. Plz help me

Response: Hello Sahnaz, it happens if the chenna has excess moisture.

Mar 08, 2017 by neetu subedar

Thank u so much ..this recipe is very easy to prepare rasgulle......

Feb 11, 2017 by Preeti

Hi

All your recipes and the way you have posted them for easy understanding is awesome. I tried rasgullas yesterday, everything went fine but the sugar syrup tasted watery, and rasgullas too. Do the sugar syrup need to have a string consistency or will it just like sugar dissolved in water. Please help.Thank you in advance :)

Response: Hello Preeti, the syrup of rasgulla doesn't need to have a string consistency, it should be watery. However, if you like, you can add 1/2 cup more sugar while making the syrup to make it more sweet.

Jan 30, 2017 by Raunak

Maine rasgula banaya WO achhe banne lekin jab Maine cooker khola to WO aapas me chipak gaye the, aisa q hua pls suggest me..

Response: Hello Raunak, it happens if the rasgullas are overcooked.

Dec 31, 2016 by Vera

Hi, thanks for this recipe but my Rusgulla melted in water and I was depressed.

Response: The reason behind melted/broken rasgulla in syrup is the excess moisture in chhena.

Nov 01, 2016 by Geeta

Hi,

Can you sugegst the brand of milk to be used? Or should we use the one from Tabela?

Response: You can use the any brand milk. If possible, use cow's milk for this recipe.

Oct 04, 2016 by Shweta

Sometimes when we keep milk for boiling it starts curdling on its own. In such cases can we use that?

Response: Hello Shweta, if the curdled milk doesn't smell rancid, you can use it to make the paneer for curry (not for rasgulla).

Oct 04, 2016 by Aleena

Easy way to make all sweets.

Aug 21, 2016 by Sadhana

I tried it today but my rosglla starts straggled when cooked in syrup.

Response: Hello Sadhana, I think the reason behind it is the excess moisture in chenna.

Jul 26, 2016 by Deepak

I tried many of your recipe all are very good and everyone appreciated me but in this, everything went well in starting and no ball broken but in the end, ball didn't turn bigger in size. For how long it should be cook in cooker?

Response: Hello Deepak, thank you for trying the recipe. The main reasons behind your problem are either the dry chenna or syrup was not boiling while cooking the balls. Chenna should have enough moisture and syrup must be boiling while cooking.

Jul 16, 2016 by Anita

Yes, Rasagola's birthplace is Odisha.
But, why no mention of it as "Odia Recipe"?
You have listed it as a Bengali recipe.
Today is Niladri Bije, ancient ritual of Jagannath Temple, Puri where Lord Jagannath feeds Rasagolas to His wife. Celebrated as Rasagola Dibasa!
Happy #RasagolaDibasa

Response: Hello Anita, you are right about no mention of Odia Recipe. Right now, there are not many Odia recipes on this site and so the category is not generated. However, we will definitely assign the Odia category to the rasgulla when we have enough Odia Recipes.

Jul 07, 2016 by Lavanya

Hi, I tried today, everything went fine but rasgulla is hard..not that smooth.

Response: Thank you Lavanya for trying the recipe. The the main reason behind hard rasgulla is the dry chhena (less moisture). If you squeezed out chhena (freshly prepared paneer) too much or hang it for a longer time, they will turn hard.

Jun 22, 2016 by Sayed Imitihaz Ali

Hi,
How do I know that chenna has the right moisture?
Please suggest me.

Thanks.

Response: Hello Sayed, when you touch the chenna, it should not have any water in it but when you touch it, it should feel little wet and not dry (like store bough paneer).

May 07, 2016 by Kanupriya

Your recipes are so easy and I don't have to rush to market every time to try your recipe. Everything is there in home. I appreciate u..I can make dishes so tasty because of u.. Thank You so much. Can u let me know that how much we have to spend to start a food blog.. any idea about the earning per month.

Response: Thank you Kanupriya for the wonderful feedback. You need to spend for domain name (one time purchase), hosting and theme (one time purchase/ or use a free theme). Follow this link How to start a Food Blog to get the detailed answers about your queries. If you have any further questions, feel free to ask.

May 07, 2016 by Kanu Panwar

Hi, I tried it today but my chenna was releasing fat already before kneading. I made chenna from pure cow milk. Still I do it and rasgullas broke while boiling.

Response: Hello Kanu, I think something is wrong with chenna. When you try next time, make the chenna with another brand milk and then try the rasgulla.

May 02, 2016 by Kirti

Can you suggest how to use chenna water in cooking?

Response: Hello Kirti, you can use chenna water to bind the dough, making gravy of curry etc.

Apr 20, 2016 by Neeta

I too tried it today... But unfortunately paneer balls broke in cooker. Very well explained but still I failed. I like foodviva's all recipes its awesome. Thanks and keep posting new dishes.
Paneer balls cracked in cooker now what shud be done with this mess? Any further renovation to this dish?

Response: Hi Neeta, sorry to hear that rasgulla balls broke while boiling.
Strain the mixture, keep the liquid syrup (in refrigerator) to cook the next batch and use strained paneer mixture in making punjabi gravy or cook it with condensed milk to make a sweet like milk halwa.
When you try this next time, 1. make sure that paneer is kneaded for enough time And 2. first, add only one ball in syrup and let it cook for 5-6 minutes, if it is not breaking, cook the remaining balls.
I hope this will help you.

Apr 01, 2016 by Nabanita Roy

I tried to make rasgulla but after placing the balls in syrup, they increased in size and after sometime they diluted with syrup. Please suggest me what can I do.

Response: Thank you Nabanita for trying the recipe. If the chenna is too dry (less moisture) or having too much moisture, balls will dilute in syrup while cooking. When you try this next time, make sure that chenna has the right moisture and kneaded for enough time.

Mar 22, 2016 by Bhavna

Hi,
I tried to make rasgulla as per above steps. I placed the chenna balls to boil in the sugar syrup, and after 5 mins I opened the lid and found that the balls were broken. Please suggest what went wrong ?

Response: Hi Bhavana, the excess moisture in chenna is the main reason behind broken balls while boiling.

Mar 07, 2016 by Sara Roshan

Any problem if we over knead the chenna to make rasgulla? I did according to the recipe. I allowed it to boil for 7 mins in the cooker with the lid covered. After 7 mins, when I opened and saw, the rasgullas had increased in size and then I just allowed one whistle...the rasgullas just SHRUNK...

Response: Hi Sara, stop kneading the chenna when it starts to release the fat (when your hands turn greasy). In the given recipe, the rasgullas are cook covered (not pressure cooked, don't put whistle over lid while cooking), I think you cook the rasgullas for longer. When you try it next time, don't put the whistle on the lid.

Feb 17, 2016 by Kumar

My first attempt and i know the mistakes i made.
The paneer was moist - so the rasagullas cracked a bit. I did not cook enough - little taste of paneer!
Very good recipe and perfect steps and explanations. Thank you!

Response: Your'e welcome.

Nov 05, 2015 by Savitri

The crumbled paneer did not form a solid mass. Not able to make balls. Can you please give a solution?

Response: Hi Savitri, it happens if the paneer is too dry. How long did you knead the crumbled paneer? Just try to knead it using your hand (like we make roti dough) until it all comes together.

Oct 28, 2015 by Aarti

I tried many of your recipe all are vary good but in dis recipe my rasgoola turn flat. I tried it again and again but didn't succeed. Help me to make rasgoola in round shape.

Response: Hi Aarti, thanks for trying the recipes. The main reason behind flat rasgulla is excess moisture in chhena. When you make it next time, hang the paneer little longer or just press the hanged paneer between paper napkin to remove excess moisture.

Sep 18, 2015 by Sonal

Thanks, I tried and it came well. Only problem is that rasgulla tasted more like Chhena. It's not tasking like shop bought Rasgulla.. Don't know what went wrong ?

Response: If the rasgulla is not cooked for enough time, it will taste like chhenna.

Sep 02, 2015 by Anup Kharel

Hi, I did everything but my rasgullas neither swell nor get spongy. Its size remained same even after boiling for 15 mins. I used fresh cow milk. Please suggest!!

Response: The reasons behind not spongy rasgullas are given below.
It happens if the chenna (fresh paneer) was not kneaded enough (until it releases the fat).
Did you cover the pan while boiling rasgullas and did you boil them over medium flame?

Jul 30, 2015 by Neha Sharma

Hi, While making the rasgulla, it was very nice and came out doubled in size I just tasted it but it was very hard from inside, NO spongy. Please guide me why did that happen? Give me a tip.

Response: Hi Neha, thanks for trying the recipe. The main reason behind hard rasgulla is the dry chhena (less moisture). If you squeezed out chhena (freshly prepared paneer) too much or hang it for longer time (more than 30-45 minutes), the final rasgulla will turn hard.

Jun 30, 2015 by Radhu

Tried the recipe on weekend. Made it in angoor size, it came out very well. Just that the sugar was little mild. My Hubby and my dad loved it.

Response: Hi Radhu, thanks for trying the recipe. You can add more sugar (1/2 cup more) while making sugar syrup, if you like more sweet taste.

Jun 09, 2015 by Bibha

Thanks for sharing this recipe . Your tips are very useful. I tried it making today and it came out very well. It turned little bit flat after boiling. Will try to reduce moisture next time. Please share moong dal halwa recipe as well.

Response: Thanks for trying the recipe. We will definitely try to upload the recipe of moong dal halwa.

May 31, 2015 by Prachi

Hi, really very nice recipe for a non cook like me.
However, please note my rasgullas didn't become sweet. Please advise me on this.

Response: Hi Prachi, you can increase the amount of sugar in sugar syrup to make rasgullas sweeter.

May 15, 2015 by Asma Begum

While making the rasgulla, when it has doubled in size I just tasted it but it was soggy from inside. Is it normal?

Response: Hi Asma, thanks for trying the recipe. If it tastes soggy then no need to worry but if it tastes like raw paneer then cook it for few more minutes.

May 04, 2015 by Smita

Thanks for the recipe. I have trying it for so long. My rasgullas were good in shape and size but why are those tasting still like sweet paneer. Please help me with this. Thank you in anticipation.

Response: Hi Smita, the main reason behind rasgulla tastes like paneer is that they are raw and not cooked enough. Cook them covered in boiling sugar syrup for 12 minutes (no lesser than that). The time required to cook them varies according to the size of raw paneer balls and how deep is the vessel being used for cooking.

Apr 22, 2015 by Gunja Bakshi

Amazing!! I was trying to prepare Rasagulla for a long time and never succeed but thanks to your recipe in just one shot I got beautiful and so spongy rasagulla. super..

Response: Thanks Gunja for trying the recipe.

Mar 15, 2015 by Usha

Thanks for the lovely recipe. The rasgulla came out very well and was very tasty. But the they were flat at one side. They did not swell evenly.

Response: Hi Usha, thanks for trying the recipe. If the chhena has excess moisture then cooked rasgulla will turn flat and not keep their shape after cooking.

Mar 03, 2015 by Deepanjali

Today I tried this and it was good. Please upload a recipe of gulab jamun with pictures.

Response: Hi Deepanjali, we will soon post the step by step pictures for the gulab jamun recipe.

Feb 16, 2015 by Bhavani

I tried, it was very nice but some lemon taste in that how to avoid that. Please give me a tip.

Response: Hi Bhavani, follow the given tips to reduce the lemon taste in rasgulla.
1. Strain the lemon juice through a sieve to remove any lemon pulp.
2. Do not forget to wash the chhena (freshly made paneer) to remove the sour taste from lemon.

Jan 15, 2015 by Kay Ali

Hi, I tried making them but unfortunately my rasgulla broke in between while boiling. Could you please tell me why did that happened?

Response: Hi, sorry to hear that they broke while boiling. The reason behind rasgulla broke while boiling is the excess moisture in the chhena (paneer). Chhena should be dry but little moist. When you knead the chhena (in step-6) and if your palms turn wet because of excess moisture, then it is too wet. Hang it for sometime or press it between paper napkins to get rid of excess moisture and then try again.

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